HANOI (ANN/VIETNAM NEWS) – The initial USD41 million generated from carbon credit sales marks a milestone for six Vietnamese north-central provinces under the emission reduction pact with the World Bank.
These funds are allocated to compensate forest owners, local communities, and residents, promoting the sustainable management, protection, and development of forests.
Vietnam celebrates the successful implementation of its inaugural emission reduction agreement, a significant stride in bolstering forest conservation and enhancing the well-being of its people. The six participating provinces—Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, and Thua Thien-Hue—cover more than 3.1 million hectares, constituting 58 per cent of their total land area.
Nguyen Quang Bao, Director of the Department of Forestry within the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, emphasises the imperative to safeguard special-use, protective, and natural forests, aiming to augment carbon reserves.
“In addition to increasing wood productivity and carbon content, the forests will create added value and improve livelihoods for vulnerable communities.”
95 per cent of households in Tra Mang Village, Thuong Lo Commune, Nam Dong District, Thua Thien-Hue Province are Co Tu ethnic people.
For the past 10 years, they have protected 560ha of forest.
Each year, on average, each household receives VND2.4 million (USD98) from forest environmental services.
The Tra Mang Village community has protected the forest well.
In addition to receiving money from forest environmental services, for the first time, it also received money from selling carbon credits.
In the future, it will receive an additional payment of VND190 million (USD7,800) from the sale of carbon credits.
After the success of piloting payments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in six provinces, many localities with large areas of well-protected natural forests are ready to soon implement the programme.
About 70 households in Ngai Tro Village, Den Sang Commune, Bat Xat District in Lao Cai Province have received forest protection contracts from the Forest Protection and Development Fund.
On average, each household will receive about VND2 million (USD80) per year.
Giving up exploiting forest products and participating in forest protection, forest owners in the province are protecting more than 230,000ha of forest, each year receiving nearly VND152 billion (USD6.2 million) in environmental service contracts.
Lào Cai Province’s forested area is nearly 400,000ha, of which over 70 per cent is natural forest.
Its potential to implement carbon sequestration services is huge, about nearly one million credits, said Phạm Van Dang, Director of the provincial Forest Protection and Development Fund.
As many as 58 countries have developed carbon markets with 27 having carbon taxes and some countries with both.
To develop the carbon market in Vietnam, it is necessary to complete the legal framework for the exchange of greenhouse gas emission quotas, carbon credits and the credit exchange mechanism.
